Nizhny Novgorod Fair

Nizhny Novgorod Fair is a modern exhibition complex and one of the popular brands of Nizhny Novgorod. Even those who have never once in their lives had a chance to visit the Volga city have probably heard about the local fair.

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Highlights

The shopping complex began to be erected in the early 19th century. Its importance for the state is evidenced by the fact that Emperor Alexander I allocated for the new construction the funds planned for the reconstruction of the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg.

The Nizhny Novgorod Fair quickly became a popular trading place and cultural center of the entire Volga region. It contributed to the development of Russian merchants and crafts, as well as the emergence of the city’s service sector – a hotel chain, restaurants and baths. Nowadays, the restored exhibition complex serves as a venue for domestic and international forums, representative meetings and conferences.

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Tourists coming to the city like to visit the Nizhny Novgorod Fair. On its territory there are six pavilions. Of the old buildings here are preserved two Orthodox cathedrals and the Main Fair House. Guests are welcomed by a modern shopping arcade with an area of 1.5 thousand m². In its stores you can make necessary purchases, choose pleasant souvenirs, as well as have a good time in cafes and restaurants. There is a bank for visitors at the Nizhny Novgorod Fair, and its own hotel is open for travelers.

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Trade in Nizhny Novgorod before the construction of the fair

Merchants began to develop the banks of the Volga after Russia conquered the Khanate of Kazan. Time passed, and a particularly busy place of trade was formed on the left bank of the river near the Makariev Monastery – 86 kilometers from the city. The fair at the monastery was held in the summer, and trade was conducted for two weeks.

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Not only Russian merchants came to the monastery, many overseas goods were brought here. Makarievskaya fair quickly grew and captured the right bank of the Volga. At the beginning of the XVIII century it gathered up to 60 thousand people. Here one could buy furs, cloth, livestock and poultry, handicrafts, carpets and goldware. There were so many goods that the annual proceeds amounted to one tenth of the country’s budget.

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At first, the merchants’ shops were made of wood, but in the mid-18th century they were replaced by a stone parlor. Full reconstruction was completed in the early 19th century. But in 1816 a devastating fire occurred at the fair, after which only one stone building remained. All wooden buildings burned to the ground.

History of Nizhny Novgorod Fair

The losses from the fire were so great that the fair was decided not to rebuild on the old site, but to move it to the city. Under the Nizhny Novgorod Fair was allocated land near the mouth of the Oka River with an area of 8 km². To protect the low-lying area from spring floods, an artificial embankment 3.5 meters high was built on it. In addition, the fairgrounds were equipped with a vaulted sewerage system, which had never been built anywhere in Russia before. The construction was led by the famous architect and engineer Augustin Augustinovich Betancourt.

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Regular trade in the Volga city began in the summer of 1822. In those days, the population of Nizhny Novgorod barely reached 20 thousand people, and about 200 thousand merchants and buyers came to the popular trade fair. The fair was held for over a month, so the city was noisy with visitors until the end of August.

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The Great Guest Yard consisted of 60 buildings, which contained 2.5 thousand merchants’ shops. Orthodox churches, a mosque and an Armenian-Gregorian church stood at the Nizhny Novgorod Fair. Asian merchants traded tea in luxuriously decorated Chinese rows. It had its own theater and circus. The Main Fair House hosted concerts and troupes of famous artists who came to the banks of the Volga from the capital and other major Russian cities.

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In the 60s of the XIX century at the fairgrounds put the first streetlights, and in 1885 its territory was completely electrified. This was done on purpose, as at the end of the XIX century Nizhny Novgorod Fair had the great honor of hosting a representative All-Russian exhibition.

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The period of decline of the fairgrounds came during the years of the First World War. Trade was greatly reduced, and the empty buildings began to house military units and refugees. After the establishment of Soviet power, the Nizhny Novgorod Fair was allowed to exchange goods only for bread, so there were almost no sellers and buyers.

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When the NEP came to the country, trade increased tenfold, and the fair received the status of the All-Union Exhibition. In 1930, the attitude of the Country of Soviets to the NEP changed, Nizhny Novgorod Fair was completely closed, and its premises were given to apartments for city dwellers. The cult buildings, with the exception of two large cathedrals, were destroyed. The residential apartments were hardly cared for, and they resembled slums. The revitalization of the fairgrounds began in the 1990s.

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Fair cathedrals

One of the remaining churches from the old Nizhny Novgorod Fair stands in the center of the trade territory (Staroyarmarochny Proyezd, 10). Spaso-Preobrazhensky Cathedral was built according to the project of the famous architect Auguste Montferrand and consecrated in 1822. It is set on piles driven into a pillow of bulk soil, and the foundation of the temple is bonded with water-resistant Portland cement. The building of the five-domed Old Fairgrounds Cathedral is built in the tradition of classicism and is decorated on all sides with strict columned porticoes.

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Another cathedral preserved at the Nizhny Novgorod Fair is the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral. It appeared in 1881 and was consecrated in the presence of the imperial family. The tent domes of the New Fair Cathedral rise to a height of 87 meters and are clearly visible both from the Volga River and from the city.

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Today both cathedrals are active. They are open for believers and tourists every day from 8.00 to 19.00.

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How to get there

The Nizhny Novgorod Fair is spread out near the mouth of the Oka River and the Kanavinsky Bridge, between Sovetskaya and Sovnarkomovskaya Streets. It is 1.3 km away from the railway station, so it is not difficult to get here on foot. In addition, you can get to the Nizhny Novgorod Fair by buses and shuttle buses. You need to go to the stop “Lenin Square” or “Strelka”.

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